Edgar Berlanga says he wants Jaime Munguia next in a fight in the first of three names that he believes will lead him to a rematch with Canelo Alvarez. The other two are Jermall Charlo, who hasn’t fought in two years, and Caleb Plant. Berlanga (23-1, 18 KOs) believes that Canelo will want to give him a rematch after beating those three.
Berlanga’s Targets
If Berlanga fights like he did in his last contest against Jonathan Gonzalez-Ortiz, he can probably beat Munguia, Charlo, and Plant just on size alone. Edgar is clearly no longer a true super middleweight. You’re not a super middleweight when you miss weight and come into the fight looking like a cruiserweight.
The three guys that Berlanga wants to fight to try and earn a rematch with Canelo aren’t the best at 168. Jermall Charlo hasn’t fought in two years and turns 35 in May. He’s not one of the top guys in the division.
Munguia was knocked out in his last fight by Bruno Surace and was beaten by Canelo last year in May. That’s a 2-2 record. Munguia is not among the best at 168. Plant is 32 and hasn’t fought anyone good since losing to David Benavidez.
He’s a lot bigger than the three, but he could have problems if he keeps missing weight. He weighed in at 169 3/4 lbs for his fight against Gonzalez-Ortiz on March 15th at the Caribe Royale in Orlando, Florida.
After Berlanga rehydrated for the fight, he looked like he was 200 lbs easily. In his previous fight against Canelo last September, he rehydrated to 193 lbs. after weighing in at 167 3/4 lbs.
“We haven’t sat down yet, but we’re going to sit down soon,” said Edgar Berlanga to Brian Campbell’s YouTube channel when asked if he’s started negotiating with Turki Alalshikh yet. “There are a lot of opportunities. We want to sit down with the guys who run DAZN. We want to go straight to the source [rather than sign with a promoter].
Canelo’s Rematch Dream
“I want to make the biggest fights happen in 2025, 2026, 2027, 2028 and 2029 and become a legend and eventually get that rematch with Canelo,” said Berlanga, who still has never beaten a top-tier fighter.”
I don’t see Berlanga getting a rematch with Canelo, but that’ll come down to the Mexican star. If he’s that much afraid of fighting the top contenders in the division, he’ll look in Berlanga’s direction for a needless rematch. It could come down to whether Turki Alalshikh would be willing to offer him a bunch of money for the rematch.
“We’re going to fight, and when we fight, I’m going to retire him,” said Berlanga about Caleb Plant. “I’m going to end his career. There’s nobody like me fighting at the elite level, fighting the top of the top against big names.”
Plant might outbox Berlanga the way Canelo did and make him look just as inept. I’d be surprised if Berlanga chooses to fight Plant because he’s seemed reluctant to fight him.
“Before I do that, I got to clean out 168 first,” said Berlanga when asked if he’d be interested in going up to 175 to fight former super middleweight world champions David Benavidez and David Morrell at light heavyweight. “I got to smash Munguia. I got to smash Plant. I got to smash [Jermall] Charlo. I feel like those three names there will solidify [me].
“Then rematch Canelo and smash Canelo because I know I can smash him. I fought that guy at 50%. I was going through MRIs during that camp. I had tendinitis all over my elbow. I was taking cortisone shots. I fought that guy at 50% on six weeks’ notice,” said Berlanga.